Spanish Colonization of the Americas (1492-1550)
The Discovery and Conquest of America (1492-1550)
I. Introduction
The discovery of America marked the end of Castile’s Atlantic expansion and shifted the European economy towards the Atlantic. Starting in 1508, Spain began its conquest and colonization of the Americas. By 1520, significant quantities of precious metals started arriving in Seville, fueling Spain’s imperialist policies with a constant flow of wealth from the New World. Castile transplanted its political, administrative, and social structures to the Americas, resulting in the tragic decline of over three-quarters of the indigenous population.
Background
Both Portugal and Spain sought a sea route to the Sudan along the Moroccan coast. Castile’s conquest of the Canary Islands allowed them to establish a trade monopoly. In 1462, Christopher Columbus unsuccessfully proposed to the King of Portugal a westward route to India, based on the Earth’s sphericity and the perceived proximity of the Asian coast. Portugal’s rejection led Columbus to approach the Spanish Crown.
The Capitulations of Santa Fe
After the conquest of Granada, Queen Isabella I accepted Columbus’s proposal, and on April 17, 1492, the Capitulations of Santa Fe were signed.
Columbus’s Voyages
Columbus viewed America as a commercial enterprise. He departed from the port of Palos with three ships (the Pinta, the Niña, and the Santa Maria) and 90 men. Sailing towards the Canary Islands and then westward, he reached the Bahamas in 39 days on October 12, 1492. He subsequently discovered Cuba and Hispaniola. On March 15, 1493, he returned to Palos. Columbus made three more voyages, attempting to establish trading posts and seeking gold and spices. On his third voyage, he reached the island of Trinidad, and on his fourth, he explored the coasts of Central America.
Minor Voyages
Following Columbus’s third voyage, relations with the Spanish Crown deteriorated. The Crown granted licenses to other sailors to explore America, leading to the so-called “minor voyages.”
The Crown vs. Columbus
Columbus’s attempts to sell indigenous people into slavery were deemed unacceptable by the Crown. From 1503 onward, the Crown decided to monopolize trade with America. By 1510, the Crown granted all Spaniards the opportunity to trade with the New World.
II. The Conquest of the Americas
The Antilles and the Pacific
The conquest continued with the capture of Puerto Rico in 1508, Jamaica in 1509, and Cuba in 1510 by Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar. In 1513, Vasco Núñez de Balboa discovered the Pacific Ocean.
The Conquest of the Aztec Empire (1519-1521)
Hernán Cortés, a skilled conquistador, signed an agreement with the King outlining the distribution of profits. However, his ambitions grew beyond mere loot to encompass titles and offices. In 1519, Cortés landed on the coast of Mexico. Exploiting internal conflicts, he captured the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlán. The need to confront Pánfilo de Narváez led to a temporary defeat in the “Noche Triste.” However, after the victory at Otumba, Cortés definitively captured Tenochtitlán. He was subsequently appointed governor of New Spain by King Charles I.
The Conquest of the Inca Empire
The conquest of the Inca Empire was marked by a civil war between conquistadors, ending in the deaths of both Francisco Pizarro and Diego de Almagro. Other notable expeditions included Pedro de Valdivia’s conquest of Chile, Pedro de Mendoza’s conquest of the Río de la Plata region, and Diego de Ordás’s exploration of the Orinoco River. Between 1519 and 1522, Ferdinand Magellan and Juan Sebastián Elcano completed the first circumnavigation of the globe.
III. Colonization of America
The Role of Indigenous Peoples and the Church
Due to the scarcity of gold and spices in the early years of colonization, Columbus attempted to compensate by enslaving indigenous people for forced labor in mines and on plantations.
Laws on Indigenous Labor
- Laws of Burgos (1512): Established the encomienda system, under which indigenous people were entrusted to Spanish settlers for labor and religious instruction.
- Laws of 1532: In response to frequent abuses by encomenderos, the Crown attempted to replace the encomienda with a system of paid labor.
- New Laws of 1542: Prohibited the enslavement of indigenous people and the granting of new encomiendas.
Government and the Indies
America became a territory of Castile, and the two were linked through the creation of institutions such as the Casa de Contratación and the Council of the Indies. For the governance of America, viceroyalties, provincial governorships, audiencias (courts), and municipalities were established.
The Transformation of the European Economy
The European population grew, commercial technology advanced, and economic growth accelerated. However, expensive international policies led to significant debt. The impact of American trade on Castilian demand was substantial. Seville became the most important port in Europe, and its merchants channeled strong American demand. Meeting this demand required significant capital, and the involvement of foreign traders was partly due to Castile’s inability to meet it alone. Initially, American demand led to increased prices and boosted Castilian agricultural and artisanal production. However, this growth was short-lived due to backward production techniques. Agriculture expanded in the early years, but many farmers also fell into debt. The two major American products that revolutionized the European economy were gold and silver, leading to the phenomenon known as the Price Revolution. The kings’ debts to foreign bankers, incurred to finance their costly imperial policies, caused a significant outflow of gold to Europe.